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Sometimes when I'm having a very bad day warming up, I grab a 40-50 DB and goblet squat and just sit there for 30-40 seconds, pushing my knees out with my elbows, getting a feel for the bottom position. I think that works because my problems are usually more back than hamstring.

If it's a hamstring tightness issue, I think some big leg swings and some high knee running in place would work prettty well too. I used to do those when I had tight hamstrings before running or soccer.

I normally do bodyweight warmups and empty/ lightweight bar work to warmup, too. But, I hear you about when sometimes that is simply not enough for my creaky bones.

I typically, use 3 to 4 warmup sets of the type of squat I am performing. It's pretty much the same for each exercise I perform, with 2 exceptions. As I progress (rep and/or weight on the bar) in the main lift I am warming up to, the warmup sets also increase slightly as well. Pretty basic.

I generally start with a few mins on a recumbent bike to get the knees warmed up and heart rate up, then do some straight leg swings (front/front and side/side) to open up the hips somewhat. Then I start squatting sets of 5, starting with 2 sets on an empty bar, and then add 25's/45's until I'm at about 50% of my working weight. Once I get past 50% of my working weight I drop the reps to 3/2/1 reps or so. Usually I'm really stiff until I get to at least 135 or so.